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Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
National
Matt Moore

Lollapalooza’s expected economic impact vs. NASCAR’s, the lives forever changed by COVID and more in your Chicago news roundup

Fans wait for Dua Lipa to perform on day two of Lollapalooza in Grant Park, Friday night, July 29, 2022. (Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times file)

Good afternoon. Here’s the latest news you need to know in Chicago. It’s about an eight-minute read that will brief you on today’s biggest stories.

— Matt Moore (@MattKenMoore)

Weather 🌧️

This afternoon will be cloudy with a chance of showers and a high near 53 degrees. Expect showers and possibly a thunderstorm tonight with a low near 39. Tomorrow will also see showers along with a high near 44.


Top story

Lollapalooza will generate 3 times the economic activity of NASCAR race in less time

Lollapalooza generated a third of a billion dollars in economic activity in Chicago last year, three times higher than the NASCAR Fourth of July weekend street race is expected to rake in, according to a new study.

But the street race, although less lucrative for Chicago businesses, will occupy parts of Grant Park for nearly twice as much time during the busy summer season. Critics call it a bad deal.

“The impact to the city in terms of cost and congestion will be more than Lolla, and the returns are significantly less,” said 2nd Ward Ald. Brian Hopkins said of the NASCAR race, scheduled for July 1-2.

NASCAR may take up space in Grant Park between 20 and 40 days, depending on weather, Hopkins said. NASCAR will also need to modify curbs and remove manhole covers, which could add more time, Hopkins said. A NASCAR spokesman said a final timeline of road and park closures is still being worked out with city departments. NASCAR has said roads and most areas of the park will likely be closed between June 28 and July 3 or 4.

Lolla, by contrast, will use Grant Park for 24 days total, between July 21 and Aug. 13. The four-day festival is set for Aug. 3-6. Lollapalooza, which recently signed a 10-year deal with the city, appears to be more advantageous for the city in terms of economic activity, tax revenue and fees.

Our David Struett compares and contrasts the two events that will define downtown’s summer.


More news you need


COVID-19: Three years later

Jessica Tapper holds up a photo of her husband Matthew “Turk” Agostini in her Oak Lawn home. Matthew died of COVID-19 complications in November of 2020, a few weeks before his son was born. (Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times)

These are some of the lives forever changed by COVID-19

Maybe you remember the first time you saw someone in a grocery store wearing a face mask and latex gloves and even a plastic face shield and thought: That’s a little extreme.

But it wasn’t all that uncommon after Gov. J.B. Pritzker declared on March 20, 2020: “To avoid the loss of potentially tens of thousands of lives, we must enact an immediate stay-at-home order for all in Illinois.”

By then, we knew — well, most of us — that the coronavirus was serious stuff.

There were daily tallies of the sick and of the dead. To stay safe, we were told to wash our hands thoroughly and often. Many of us wiped down our groceries. Some drank more or sought counseling — via Zoom.

When a favorite restaurant finally reopened, we never imagined food could taste so good. We saw children go back to school and delighted in the sound of their shrieking voices — even as worries lingered about the long-term effects of remote schooling.

Three years into the COVID-19 pandemic, things appear to have have slowly returned to a kind of normal for many.

And most of us would say the pandemic has changed us in some way. Maybe we lost a job — or chose to quit one. Maybe a loved one succumbed to the virus. Then, there are the ways we do some things in a way we never had before. A telehealth doctor’s “visit.” A meeting via video. Or just feeling a tinge of worry at the sound of someone nearby coughing.

Our Stefano Esposito and Mariah Rush spoke with several Illinoisans especially affected by the pandemic.

A mother who lost her partner less than a month before their son was born. A beloved tamales seller whose still working to pay off medical bills following a serious bout of COVID. A grandmother, an immunocompromised musician and a teen — all each dealing with the debilitating effects of long COVID.

Our reporters share these stories from our neighbors.


A bright one

Reflecting on ‘Match Day’ in Chicago: Jittery moments as UIC medical students find out where they will spend the next 6 years

After four years of grueling 10- to 12-hour days, much of it spent online because of the pandemic, it all came down to the little white envelope in front of Benjamin Aronson last Friday.

“It’s a surreal thing. The next possible six years of my life are in this little envelope here, and I’m lost for words,” said Aronson, 29, as he and 165 other fourth-year University of Illinois College of Medicine students gathered to see where they would spend their residencies.

No wonder, then, that sweat pooled on Aronson’s brow before he opened his envelope and found out that he’d been accepted to UChicago Medicine.

“We’re over the moon,” said Aronson. By “we,” he meant his girlfriend, Ana Gonzalez, 27, who found out her residency will be at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

Ana Gonzalez, 27, who was accepted into Northwestern’s interventional radiology program, receives a kiss from her boyfriend Benjamin Aronson, 29, who got into University of Chicago’s internal medicine program, Friday, March 17. (Pat Nabong/Sun-Times)

Medical students across the United States learned last Friday where they’d be heading for residencies through the National Resident Matching Program, a nonprofit organization that seeks to match students’ preferences with those of residency program directors.

Aronson had applied to 80 hospitals, Gonzalez about 90; both were delighted to be staying in Chicago. Gonzalez’s parents had flown in from Mexico City to be at UIC Isadore and Sadie Dorin Forum on Friday. It was an especially emotional moment for Gonzalez, who was born in Mexico. Her grandfather Manuel Cardoso, who died in 2016, had come from Mexico to Chicago for his radiology residency. He then returned to Mexico to practice.

“He would be so proud,” Gonzalez said. “He really gave his life to radiology.”

Our Stefano Esposito has more on this next generation of health care workers.


From the press box


Your daily question☕

Did you pick up a new hobby during those initial, shelter-in-place pandemic months? Do you still keep up with it?

Send us an email at newsletters@suntimes.com and we might feature your answer in the next Afternoon Edition.

Yesterday, we asked you: How has your life changed since the start of the pandemic? 

Here’s what some of you said…

“I’ve spent an inordinate amount of time entertaining myself. Now that the weather is getting warmer, I find myself getting back out there and engaging with others more - seeing old friends and making new ones. I missed people.” — Susan Danzig

“Zero trust in the health care industry and zero trust in government. Home is the only place I want to be.” — Derek Antal

“I do curb pickup for groceries and avoid in-store shopping. Sad!” — Linda Johnson Thornton

“Working from home and not dealing with actual office drama and politics.” — Marsha Dunlap


Thanks for reading the Chicago Sun-Times Afternoon Edition. Got a story you think we missed? Email us here.

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